Vegetable Price difference: local market vs online

I bought some vegetables for home at Tiruvanmiyur this morning. Evening when I went for a walk, entered a branded vegetable shop- Pazhamudir Nilayam with an idea of comparing the prices.

Branded shops will definitely be expensive because they have more overhead costs- staff salary, AC, rental etc- I was expecting 10-15% difference, but I was surprised to find almost two times the pricing in some cases. Since most of us do not have the time and patience to compare the prices and blindly believe in display price shown in super markets, I felt I should publish a post comparing the prices, so that consumers will have an idea of what they are paying.

Of course there aren't too many standards in fruits and vegetable pricing. Price varies by quality, freshness and demand/supply equation. Also measure can vary- few sell per kg, few sell in loose units. In below table, between Tiruvanmiyur market and Pazhamudir, I have ensured to use price of same quality item. The last two I can't check quality online, so have picked up most relevant item from their site for comparison hoping they are of best quality.

There's also an argument that buying from local shops helps in livelihood of poor people while buying at branded shops adds to the kitty of corporate big shots. Probably true, but local shop owners should try to adopt few basic principles such as hygiene, quality, fairness in weight and pricing etc.

Above: A man and woman running a shop in Coimbatore vegetable market excited to get photographed...

Another alternative is to order online, prices are little expensive than wholesale market but if you trust the brand you can try them. In my personal opinion, visiting the vegetable shop/market in person at least gives you some exercise and gives you a sense of what's latest in the market, which fruits are having its season and so on.

My experience is that every shop will have one or two items ( loss leaders) at slightly less price that they will highlight. Same for Online shops and departmental stores and then they will charge more or less same price for other things.

I was having a similar conversation with my husband the other day - India had become consumerism driven as opposed to what it used to be - a Savings driven community. While we still think more than once about whether we need something or whether we just want it the younger crowd seems to be thinking less that way.

We were taught to fix something that was broken rather than throwing it away and getting a replacement.

Which is why I am more drawn to the minimalistic way of life where people choose to quality over quantity and yet stick to the basics.

Nice research and by the way ibuyfresh.com is a sister concern of Kovai Pazhamudhir milayam..you can read my warehouse visit review here https://rurlink.wordpress.com/2015/01/26/ibuyfresh-your-one-stop-online-destination-for-grocery-vegetables-fruits-and-more/